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William Shakespeare. 1564-1616. Childhood. Born April 23, 1564 in Stratford-upon-Avon -actual date uncertain. Very little is known about his younger life. Parents. His dad, John, was a successful glove maker and local politician. Parents.
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William Shakespeare 1564-1616
Childhood • Born April 23, 1564 in Stratford-upon-Avon -actual date uncertain. • Very little is known about his younger life.
Parents • His dad, John, was a successful glove maker and local politician.
Parents • His mom, Mary Arden, was the daughter of a well-to-do farmer. • Both parents were illiterate.
Young Adult • William loved to read and improved himself through books • He never went to college, but was considered the most widely educated man who ever lived.
Married Life • At 18, William married Anne Hathaway. • Anne was 26 and pregnant with their daughter Susanna when they got married. • They also had twins- Judith and Hamnet. Hamnet died at age 11.
The Lost Years • Ten years between Stratford and London that we know nothing about.
London • Shakespeare moved to become an actor and a playwright. • He joined a company of actors known as The Lord Chamberlain’s men. -renamed The King’s men.
Globe Theater • In 1598, he built his own theater – The Globe.
His Writings • He is considered the greatest writer of English literature. • Shakespeare wrote 37 plays (comedies, histories, and tragedies), 2 narrative poems, and 154 sonnets.
His Writings • Original dates of plays are unknown since they were written to be performed. • A collection of his plays were published in 1623 by two fellow-actors.
His Death • William Shakespeare died on April 23,1616
Background on Hamlet • Hamlet dates back to the Danish historian Saxo—Grammaticus who recounted the history of Prince Amleth, son of the king of Jutland who was murdered by his brother. • The most common version of the three accepted versions of Hamlet is the full length version of posthumously in 1623. • Shakespeare’s longest play and most ambitious technically as it goes from one extreme to another (ex: from comedy to tragedy) • Shakespeare had developed a profound interest in the influence of evil on noble minds and took these ideas further in Hamlet.
Background on Hamlet • The memory of Shakespeare’s son Hamnet adds to the play’s father—son relationship. • Hamnet translates to Hamlet in Elizabethan Period and is the primary method Shakespeare used to immortalize his on • The ghost of Hamlet’s father is Shakespeare’s tribute to his father, and Shakespeare played this part in the original production by the Lord Chamberlain’s Men
What attracted Shakespeare to this ancient Danish tale? • The problems that Hamlet faces are not much different from the problems faced by any Renaissance ruler in Shakespeare’s day. • One of the major characteristics of the play is what to do when an orderly state is known to be rotten inside, when the only recourse seems to be murder, an act that a civilized prince finds personally abhorrent. • Nothing was more important to the Elizabethan than social order. • Hamlet sees the need for social stability and for orderly succession • Hamlet knows he must be true to his individual intelligence.
Renaissance Literary Period 1500-1660 The Renaissance 1558-1603 Elizabethan Age 1603-1625 Jacobean Age 1625-1649 Caroline Age 1649-1669 Commonwealth Period Elizabethan era (c. 1558–1603): A flourishing period in English literature, particularly drama, that coincided with the reign of Queen Elizabeth I and included writers such as Francis Bacon, Ben Jonson, Christopher Marlowe, William Shakespeare, Sir Philip Sidney, and Edmund Spenser.
Characteristics of the Renaissance Literary Periodhttp://www2.bakersfieldcollege.edu/English%205A/Renaissance/genl_char_renaissance.htm Content: • World view shifts from religion and after life to one stressing the human life on earth • Popular themes: • development of human potential • many aspects of love explored (unrequited, constant, timeless, courtly, love subject to change) • Order vs. Disorder • civil disorders were often accompanied by meteoric disturbances in the heavens • Not only did the chain of being concept provide a rationale for the authority of rulers; it also suggested that there was ideal behavior that was appropriate to their (the rulers_ place in the order of things Styles/Genres: • Poetry—sonnet
Characteristics of the Renaissance Literary Period Styles/Genres Cont’d: • Drama • Written in verse • Supported by royalty • Tragedies, comedies, histories • Metaphysical poetry—elaborate and unexpected metaphors called conceits Historical Context: • War of Roses ends in 1485 and political stability arrives • Printing press helps stabilize English as a language and allows more people to read a variety of literature • Economy changes from farm-based to one of international trade
Revenge Tragedy(notes from The Bedford Introduction to Literature 8th Edition) • Dates back to Greek and Roman plays, most specifically from the Roman playwright Seneca (c. 3 B.C.—A.D. 65) • Most famous Revenge Tragedy that Shakespeare crowds would have been familiar with was Spanish Tragedy (c. 1587) by Thomas Kyd Revenge Tragedy consists of the following: • murder that has to be avenged by a relative of the victim • Madness of some sort • Madness results in the deaths of • Murderer • Avenger • # of other characters
